Tag: EU ECHO

A busy fortnight of training

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While many people in the UK prepare for Christmas, a number of our members have been hard at work supporting disaster simulation exercises and delivering mapping training to our partners in different parts of the world.

UNDAC induction course in Ecuador

In the first week of December, three MapAction volunteers were in Riobamba supporting an UNDAC (United Nations Disaster Assessment Coordination) disaster simulation exercise with maps and data visualisations.

The team worked hard to produce a large number of maps in a short space of time under realistic field conditions.

Earthquake simulation in Armenia

At the same time, two MapAction volunteers travelled to Yerevan, Armenia, to support the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group’s (INSARAG) regional earthquake response exercise with maps. This simulation exercise was particularly poignant, coinciding as it did with the 30th anniversary of the Spitak earthquake, which killed over 25,000 Armenians and injured over 130,000 more.

During the exercise, the MapAction team worked with an UNDAC team as well as collaborating with various Search & Rescue and Emergency Medical Teams from around the world.

Induction course in Indonesia

Meanwhile, in Bogor, Indonesia, two MapAction volunteers took part in another earthquake simulation exercise as part of the 10th Induction Course of the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations Emergency Response and Assessment Team (ASEAN-ERAT). They mapped the exercise and provided a GIS refresher course.

We’ve worked closely with the ASEAN-ERAT team this year, having supported a number of training activities as well as four emergency responses (two in country and two remotely). It’s great to be strengthening our relationship with each new exercise, ensuring a very effective collaboration when circumstances demand it.

Humanitarian mapping course in Jamaica

Last week, a three-person MapAction team was in Jamaica delivering a humanitarian mapping course to emergency response coordinators from another close partner, CDEMA (the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency). This is part of a programme of longer term disaster preparedness we are working on with CDEMA supported by EU ECHO (the European Civil Protection & Humanitarian Aid Operations).

National mapping and data management training in Kyrgyzstan

A further two MapAction volunteers were in Bishkek last week to deliver a package of training on mapping, data collection and data management for national disaster management agencies.

This is part of our ongoing collaboration with CESDRR (the Central Asian Center for Emergency Situations and Disaster Risk Reduction) which sees us helping to develop best practice for emergency data management across the region.

We’re very grateful to the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) for funding our participation in the Ecuador, Armenia, Indonesia and Kyrgyzstan activities and to EU ECHO for the Jamaica course.

MapAction and CDEMA working together in the Caribbean

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In recent years we have begun working closely with the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) to help prepare for and respond to disasters and emergencies in the Caribbean region. We collaborated around the responses to Hurricane Matthew in 2016, Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017 and last week’s Tropical Storms. We have also begun to provide mapping training to Caribbean disaster responders.

Through these joint activities, we have built up a strong working relationship with CDEMA and last week this partnership was formalised through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at a ceremony in Barbados. This states that we will continue to work alongside CDEMA teams as well as supporting National Disaster Management Agencies within the Caribbean region as needed. We are helping them to improve their use of data gathering, mapping and analysis so that they can provide disaster response support quickly and in the right places. In the event of an emergency in the Caribbean region, we help CDEMA to obtain the most complete, accurate and detailed data available in the fastest possible time. As well as providing remote support, we send MapAction team members as needed to the affected location and, in certain situations, we preposition people to ensure an immediate response.

MapAction’s Chief Executive Liz Hughes traveled out to Barbados for the MoU signing ceremony. “Collaboration and partnership are fundamental to MapAction’s approach,” she commented. “We are delighted to have the opportunity to deepen and formalise our working relationship with CDEMA and we are keen to support them and their partners in whatever way we can.”

MapAction’s work to support CDEMA and national agencies in the Caribbean through training and preparedness activities is funded by the European Union Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid (EU ECHO).

Helping refugees in Uganda

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Around 1.4 million refugees are currently living in 30 settlements in Uganda. Many of them have fled conflict or abuse in South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Burundi.

For several months, MapAction has been working with humanitarian research project REACH and other humanitarian organisations in Uganda to help understand the needs of this large and diverse population of displaced people so that they get the help they need.

In April this year, a MapAction team went to Uganda to explore the information needs of humanitarian teams operating in the region and how we could help. This followed an upsurge in conflict in eastern DRC, which caused a large number of people to flee to Uganda. Since then, MapAction has undertaken three further missions to Uganda to support a large-scale assessment of the needs of refugees lead by REACH, and to deliver a humanitarian mapping course.

We are very grateful to MapAction members Jonny, Jorge, Katharina, Anne, Alistair and Becky for their hard work helping ensure that the needs of refugees in Uganda can be met. We are also grateful to the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (EU ECHO) which is funding this work through a two-year grant aimed at strengthening effective, evidence based humanitarian decision-making.

It is likely that MapAction will continue to be involved in leading training sessions and advising on the development of regional information systems in Uganda this Autumn – so watch this space for more news of that work as it unfolds.

Photo: two classroom blocks funded by EU ECHO and partners at Bidibidi refugee settlement in northwestern Uganda. EU/ECHO/Edward Echwalu

 

MapAction team responds to refugee crisis in Uganda

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A two-person MapAction team flew to Kampala, Uganda last week to provide mapping and information management support to humanitarian teams responding to a major refugee crisis in the region. This follows a recent upsurge in conflict in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), causing significant displacement of people into Uganda, a country that is already contending with a large influx of refugees from South Sudan. Around 1.9 million people have fled DRC since the start of 2017, with 242,000 being hosted in Uganda. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) estimates that 13.1 million people are in humanitarian need within DRC.

This latest MapAction deployment follows an earlier scoping mission undertaken by a two-person MapAction team during April this year to assess needs and how MapAction can help. MapAction offered support to in-country teams with analysing and reporting of gathered information to understand the needs of displaced communities. MapAction’s work is being funded by a two-year grant from European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (EU ECHO) aimed at strengthening effective, evidence based humanitarian decision-making. We will continue to provide support both in-country and remotely for around two months.